Satellite News

The launch of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 531 carrying the NROL-101 mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office is scheduled for 3/4 November 2020.

Rocket: Falcon 9; Payload: 60 Starlink satellites; Date: 24 October 2020, 1131 UTC; Launch site: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, USA. The Starlink satellites deployed approximately 1 hour and 3 minutes after lift-off. It was the 14th launch of operational Starlink satellites and the 15th Starlink flight overall.

The solid rocket motors built for Vega-C under contract to Avio have all completed the hot fire tests to qualify them for flight.

ABL Space Systems has completed integrated stage testing of the RS1 small satellite launch vehicle. Testing was performed on the RS1 second stage with the in-house designed E2 liquid rocket engine at the Area 1-56 test site on Edwards Air Force Base.

Momentus Inc. and Kepler Communications Inc. have signed a launch service agreement to deploy two additional satellites for Kepler’s GEN1 constellation in 2021.

Firefly Aerospace, Inc. announced the successful acceptance test of the first stage of its Alpha launch vehicle for its inaugural flight later this year, and the execution of new customer agreements.

Rocket: Falcon 9; Payload: 60 Starlink satellites (batch #14); Date: 18 October 2020,1225 UTC; Launch site: Kennedy Space Center, USA. The Starlink satellites deployed approximately 1 hour and 3 minutes after lift-off.

ULA said the Delta IV-Heavy’s mission to launch a classified U.S. National Reconnaissance Office spy satellite from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station will be postponed beyond next week.